A slew of new faces will appear in Boise to represent Kootenai County when the 2023 legislative session begins Jan. 9.

First-term House representatives include Joe Alfieri, Elaine Price and Jordan Redman, all R-Coeur d'Alene. Alfieri will serve on these committees: Judiciary, Rules and Administration; Local Government; and State Affairs. Price will serve on these committees: Commerce and Human Resources; Education; and Local Government. Redman will serve on the Business; Environment, Energy and Technology; and Health and Welfare committees.

The Senate will include first-term lawmakers Carl Bjerke and Ben Toews, both R-Coeur d'Alene. Doug Okuniewicz, R-Hayden, will serve in his first term as a senator, although he served one term in the House from 2020-2022. Bjerke will serve as the vice chair of the Finance Committee and as a member of the Health and Welfare Committee. Toews will serve as the vice chair of State Affairs and as a member of the Transportation Committee; and Okuniewicz will serve as chair of Transportation and as a member of the Resources and Environment Committee.

Two of North Idaho's longest-tenured representatives, Vito Barbieri, R-Dalton Gardens, and Ron Mendive, R-Coeur d'Alene, are entering their seventh and sixth terms, respectively. Mendive will be the chair of the Resources and Conservation Committee and will serve on the Education Committee. Barbieri will serve as the chair of the Environment, Energy and Technology Committee and will also be on the Business; Ethics and House Policy; and State Affairs committees.

"New legislators spend three days in intense training that runs the gamut on the legislative process," Mendive told The Press via email Wednesday. "It is likened to 'drinking from a fire hose' but it does provide a foundation for what is coming. Being in the Legislature is like going to school. The learning never ends."

He said as a pro, a large number of bright and talented people have just been elected to the Legislature.

"They ran for office to make a difference," Mendive said. "Their excitement and enthusiasm are contagious."

However, a large new class has its downfalls, too.

"When I was first elected 11 years ago, a senior legislator told me that since our post-redistricting class was so large — 30 new members in the House — special interest groups would bring forth questionable legislation and attempt to slip it through," Mendive said.

First-time elected House and Senate officials have no designated mentors, but will learn much working alongside their seasoned peers.

"Those of us who are senior can be a huge benefit to the new legislators," Mendive said. "We need to be available to answer their questions and can inform them of the mistakes we made and hopefully help them avoid some of the pitfalls. We also will work overtime in the committees to try to stop bad legislation. Bills are more difficult to stop on the floor."

Mary Souza, R-Coeur d'Alene, who just completed her fourth and final term in the Senate, said everyone in the Senate was extremely helpful when she was a new legislator.

"Every single one of them, they were all new at one point, too," she said Monday.

Many of the people who are no longer in the Senate have retired, like Souza, and others were voted out of their seats.

"I think it’s close to eight to 10 people out of the Senate," Souza said. "That’s a large number of a turnover, but then there were a fair number voted out of office, so that makes a difference."

New lawmakers in the House and the Senate attend intense orientation training, Souza said, to learn about the different departments, legalities and ethics that come along with the job.

"There are so many processes and particulars you need to know," she said, adding that first-time elected officials need a whole first term or at least first session to get a handle on processes and priorities.

The volume of new blood could prove to be challenging, for elected officials and their constituents.

"I think it's really important because most people don’t realize how the process works," Souza said. "They expect these new people, the new legislators they elected, to go down to Boise and be highly productive the first week they're in the building. That’s not going to happen.

"To have that loss of institutional knowledge and new energy is going to be a little challenging for leadership to direct," she continued. "Leadership in the House is all incumbent. In the Senate, the leadership stayed the same, there is that consistency and I think that’s going to be important for policy."

New legislators will want to immediately begin building relationships with other lawmakers, Souza said.

"Even if you’re coming in as a bloc, which is the one from North Idaho, that doesn't guarantee you that you’re going to get anything accomplished, and that might even be off-putting to other people in the Legislature," she said. "The only way you get anything through the Legislature is trust, and that trust is critical — it’s your biggest aspect. If people trust you and respect you, you can get a lot done."

Mendive said he is looking forward to a busy and productive legislative session.